Polling locations to be consolidated in village

Things could get a little more crowded at the North Lewisburg Municipal Building on future election nights.
At Tuesday night’s North Lewisburg Village Council meeting, administrator Andy Yoder said that several voting precincts outside of the village will be voting at the municipal building beginning with a May 7 special election. He reported that residents of Rush Township, Wayne Township and the village of Woodstock will be voting at the municipal building with existing North Lewisburg voters.
Mayor Cheryl Hollingsworth said the Champaign County Board of Elections is attempting to consolidate polling locations because of difficulties in recruiting workers. She said many poll workers are senior citizens and the long hours, 6 a.m. setup with an ending time that can push past 9 p.m., can be difficult for older volunteers.
Champaign County is currently broken down into 28 voting precincts that are served by nine polling locations. For reference, Union County currently has 45 precincts and is served by 18 polling locations, though board of elections officials report that both of those numbers could be growing.
Yoder also reported that the village’s final 2019 budget has been approved and has only been slightly adjusted from the temporary budget of slightly under $1.2 million. Yoder reported that an increase of $2,500 was made in the tax collection line item. The total budget amount will more from $8,000 for $10,500.
Yoder also suggested that spring cleanup week be set for May 10-17, because that is the only week which will not have conflicts with other events in the village park, where the dumpsters will be located. Council approved the dates by a 6-0 vote.